


We Dared to Dream

by try_your_best



Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst, Backstory, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Other, Polyamory, Romance, STRQ, Tags Are Hard, Team STRQ - Freeform, mainly Summer/Raven but Tai is a part of the triad, they haven't given us strq backstories yet so i'll write my own
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-09-05 20:41:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16818085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/try_your_best/pseuds/try_your_best
Summary: Team STRQ dynamics is one of the least touched subjects in the show(as of now) and I'd like to change that if I can in this possibly-not-so-canon story. Picks up a few months after the Battle at Haven and mostly focuses on Raven but there will be place for other characters, mainly Taiyang, Qrow and Summer.A shot at trying to tell stories about complex characters with many sides.





	1. Something Missing

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, I've wanted to write this story since we were first shown the famous Team STRQ. I could only get around to it last week and well here is the first chapter! I'm pretty new to writing fanfiction so all constructive criticism and any other comment is encouraged by yours truly. :) 
> 
> All main characters are from the RoosterTeeth show, RWBY. There might be some minor OCs to make things more interesting.

A thick fog surrounded her as she walked the ruins of the village. Was it the smoke from the houses they burnt down or just nature taking its course, she had no idea. The bitter smell made it impossible to tell. She looked at their faces, without any evidence of life. Killed at their houses, their farms, their shops; not even realizing who they were up against until it was too late. Not many managed to escape, they were weak, defenseless. They didn’t even deserve pity. After all, they brought it upon themselves by getting too comfortable, trusting their cozy little homes would protect them from whatever danger that may befall them.

It wasn’t her fault. She didn’t have a choice. She had a family to take care of.

The dawning sky did little to calm her twisted nerves. Vernal wasn’t there to make her morning tea anymore. There wasn’t anyone to massage her stiff shoulders after a raid, no one to listen to her while she talked about her plans for the tribe. Her hand wandered through the mess that was her hair. How long had it been since her last shower? Days? Weeks? She had no idea. Had she sent Vernal to her death? No, Vernal knew what she was in for. She agreed, she knew what it meant from the start. It was for the family.

Raven found herself thinking about him. Thought about his blond hair and gentle blue eyes, his soft smile, the familiar grief they shared, he was the only one that truly understood her. She didn’t plan to visit him, she never did. It was only when she felt broken, when she needed someone to love her. She didn’t know why she still tried, everytime the guilt and resentment would overcome any emotion after seeing him.

*****

Tai could never forget what she did, how easily she left them. But he couldn’t forget the time they spent together either. How they were happy, how they were gonna raise their little dragon. Even though deep down, he knew that was as happy as they could ever get. With the life they had, disaster was always at their doorstep. And it came, first with Raven and then…

The red-black portals he’d loathed for years was never a welcomed sight anymore. The pain of seeing her, still holding on to the hope she may one day change or come back to him. Seeing Raven again, was a disappointment as always.

A black bird with red eyes just stared at him for while, then it flew away.

“If only Summer were here…”, he thought to himself. There was just something about her, she always knew how to get through to Raven. In ways he couldn’t. Without her, everything was incomplete.

*****

Dear Raven,

~~Hey, how’s it going? No! That’s a stupid way to start a letter isn’t it? Well, this is the only piece of paper I have left so it’ll have to do~~

I miss you, I miss our home, our bed, I miss Eins. This is taking longer than expected, we should’ve kept the goodbye party longer. We definitely must have a 3-night one the next time one of us goes on a mission. One night is not nearly enough to make up for not seeing you two for more than a month. By the way, be glad that you didn’t come with me. You would haate it, all I do is try to make some shady people trust me enough give up information -too much human interaction-. I’m getting there though, I have most of it figured out. I’m pretty sure the ruins Ozpin talked about is somewhere near this town, just need the exact location and baam: clean the area and it’s home time!! I can’t wait to kiss you again.

Raven, are you taking care of yourself? Are you still having trouble sleeping? I know you have a lot on your mind, and I wish I was there to make some cookies for you -I know you secretly love them, those leftovers don’t just go up in smoke overnight- or anything you need, anything.

I met this little girl in the last town I was at. She’d lost her parents and no one was taking care of her. I shared my food with her and we took a walk together. But I couldn’t take her to a better place, I couldn’t help her Raven. Where I was going, the conditions would’ve been even worse. And I’d already lost too much time. I just, left her some money and took off. It affected me a lot, to be honest. We’re supposed to protect the people but at that moment it didn’t feel like I was protecting anyone. What we are doing is important but still, it doesn’t make things like leaving that girl any easier. So I decided to go back for her, maybe find a family willing to look after her. I’m sorry for delaying my return. I promise I won’t spend any more time than I have to.

Please try not to worry too much about me, when I come back, we can cuddle for hours and watch weird videos with Tai. Ohh, I almost forgot to tell you: I bought a brand new sash for you from a local tailor. I think his work is awesome, I hope you’ll like it, too.

I have to go now, gotta wake early in the morning. You are always on my mind, never forget that I love you, very much.

Your favorite girlfriend,  
Summer

****

Raven folded the worn out letter and put it back in its box. There weren’t a lot of things that reminded her of Summer now. Most of her stuff was at the house and she couldn’t just ask for them, could she?

She was afraid, truly afraid of being alone for the first time in a while. She was afraid of dying alone. She wondered if the curse that is maiden powers would go to Yang after she died. She didn’t want them to be her daughter’s burden, but she wasn’t sure if she could stop herself from thinking about the biggest regret of her life. Yang was her only chance to do anything good, her only way of redemption. She left them when Yang was still a baby, trusting that her daughter -their daughter- would have a nice life under Summer and Tai’s care. After meeting her, she knew her lovers did a good job. Yang was braver than Raven could ever be, capable of loving people unconditionally.  


It didn’t make things any less painful.

“Raven, we are ready to start!”, came a shout from outside of the tent.

Between the constant moving and chaos after Haven, the ceremony had to be delayed. But, it was finally time to say goodbye to their tribe’s second in command. Of course, a proper burial and a funeral were a luxury, so they had their own ways of sending their loved ones off. Raven left her tent and lit the pyre that would burn until dawn. A heavy silence fell on the camp. After the silence was over, Raven and a few of Vernal’s closest friends gave speeches about their dead companion. Then the food came, and all Raven could see was heartless people -unfazed by their tribesmate’s death- stuffing their faces and drinking cheap alcohol, like they were just looking for an excuse to have a drinking contest. She felt the guilt creeping up on her. This was not about honoring the fallen, this was a means to forget about them and move on. How long had it been since she lost someone important to her? When was the last time she let someone in?

She looked around, people were starting to get drunk, which meant it was time to resign into her tent. The wine bottles she picked up during the previous raid would have to do for tonight. She lit the single candle next to her mattress and opened the first bottle. Vernal wasn’t there to stop her after one bottle anymore, so she drank as much as she could. When her stash was finally empty, the shouting outside was dying. Then the tears came. She was thankful for them, they made her feel human. She looked around again, with no one in particular to look at. She felt lonely. Closing her eyes, she realized there was no one left to cry for her.


	2. This Is It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So after ignoring quite a few responsibilities tonight, I managed to somehow finish the second chapter. This one's much lighter than the first one, the tone of the story will vary according to the events that is covered, as you probably already noticed that yourselves. Have a nice time reading what I wrote :)

“Qrow, take those damn headphones off!”

He jumped in his place, 18 years with the girl and her yelling voice was still the most irritating thing in the world.

“What?”, he answered with a sharp voice. The airship wasn’t about to land anytime soon, was a little peace too much to ask for?

“Stop being an asshole and listen to me, please?”, Raven’s tone was a bit softer now. She knew pissing of his brother too much only led to a meaningless fight and this was not the time for it. He nodded slowly and lifted his eyebrows, listening.

“So, as you know there is going to be an initiation of some sort to decide partners and teams. From what I was able gather, we will be tasked with finding a certain spot in the Emerald Forest. During the search the first person we make eye contact with will be our partner until we graduate. I thought I could just open a portal to you so we could partner up easily. I don’t know how the teams will be formed but it doesn’t really matter who our teammates are anyways. It’s just important that we are toge-“

“I get it, Raven. You’d just miss your brother too much if we were ever apart.”, Qrow interrupted his sister with an amused grin on his face. He knew all this already, they talked about it more than three times. She was just too much of a control freak and teasing her was always too much fun to pass up.

“Damn it Qrow, why aren’t you taking this shit seriously! This is literally the most important task we’ve ever been given.”, she was anxious. They weren’t the most experienced people when it came to _school_ and _strangers_. That’s why they needed to be partners in the first place. Her brother also felt the same and nothing he said would convince her otherwise.

“Yeees, I know. I just… Look, I’m fairly aware that this is not a joke, but you talking all stressed and control-freaky doesn’t help at all. I’m going to be there with you, we’ll help each other and when we get strong enough, we bail. Simple as that. We don’t even have to stay long enough to graduate. Try to relax a bit if you can, okay?”, he was pretty tired from the long journey and wanted to rest for a bit before they reached Beacon. He looked at Raven with tired eyes, as if asking whether he was understood.

“Okay…”, and with that she started to watch Vale get further and further away through the giant windows.

“Qrow?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”

“Always, sis.”, he closed his eyes and put his headphones back on again.

****

“Daaad, pleaaase can you leave now?” , protested the girl that was being forced to pose for the photo album named “Summer’s First Day at Beacon!”.

“Not until I have enough photos to show your mom. Now smile like you mean it.”

Summer Rose tried her best to give the most genuine smile she could, hoping that it would finally make her father satisfied. She loved her parents with all her heart, but as a teenager who was leaving her home for the first time, she gave herself the right to be embarrased of them.

“So, was it okay?”

“Actually, yes. Come on, give daddy a big hug!”, Caleb Rose was a human giant and his hugs were the most intense hugs anyone had ever seen. Summer braced herself and let her father smother her in his muscular arms.

“I love you, dad. But I really should go. How am I gonna meet people if I stay with you all day?”, she already had all the conversation starters her mom prepared for her memorized. She was ready to start new friendships that were going to last for life. After all, huntsmen had a special bond. All of her mom’s friends were her fellow huntsmen, and they were the kind of friends she wanted to have when she got older.

“I love you, too, sweetheart. Don’t forget, you call us everyday and you answer to your scroll when we call you. Unless, of course you have a pretty good reason not to. Hm. Yeah, we’ll have to talk about what counts as an acceptable reason. Also, remember to be kind to everyone.”, Caleb looked like he could go on for an hour. Thankfully, he stopped himself before it was too late to turn back.

“Soo, if you are done with the dad-lecture, this is it?”, she asked with vibrant eyes.

“This is it. Your mom is definitely going to cry when she sees the photos though.”, he smiled like he was the world’s happiest man. They said their final goodbyes before Caleb went back to the mainland and let his daughter enjoy the beginning of her new life. Full of expectations and hope. 

****

Taiyang Xiao Long had always been a confident guy. He was charming, he had the looks _and_ the brains. Not to mention a bright future as a huntsman, judging by his already impressive skill level. As he was walking through the school, he had a smug grin on his face. The entrance exams to any academy were supposed to be hard but he was sure that Beacon’s were the toughest one. Even _he_ had barely passed, and that said a lot. He was the top of his class in Signal and he knew he’d continue that status. Suddenly, he felt a bump on his back before some other student fell on the ground right next to him.

“Hey, watch where you’re going, man!”, he yelled with annoyance appearent in his voice.

When he looked at the fallen girl, however, he regretted it deeply. She was drop dead gorgeous, with her porcelaine skin and red eyes that were looking at everywhere but him. When he was finally able to hold out his hand to her, he was met with a grunt and nothing else.

“Sorry for my sister, she doesn’t really get the whole being _nice_ thing.”, a guy in a gray shirt said apologetically. Probably the “chill” twin.

“I can speak for myself, Qrow. And you, be more careful the next time you’re aimlessly wandering around?”, she spat. Her voice carried something he couldn’t quite place. All Tai knew was that it was the voice of someone who’s been through some stuff.

“I’m Tai! Would you like to meet my friends Gordon and James?”, he blurted, flexing his biceps. He had no idea what he was doing, except making things even more awkward than they were a second before.

To his surprise, the girl chuckled silently.

“Nice to meet you Gordon, you too James. Can’t say the same about that guy Tai though. He’s a bit off-putting, isn’t he? And you can call me Raven.”, she spoke, head turned to Tai’s arms.

“Seriously, that worked?”, Qrow -as Raven called him- looked amused at worst. He looked like someone Tai could get along with.

“Anyways, we have to go unpack and… Well, we have a lot to do, right Qrow?”

“Yeah, yeah, let’s go. See you around, Tai.”

“Sure, see you.”, Tai flashed a smile their way and noted they didn’t really have any luggage with them. 

He continued his walk, this time much more pleased with himself. Getting in to Beacon Academy was the best thing that had ever happened to him.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for making it this far, I've got some chapters almost ready but I still need to work on them before I'm confident enough to post them. Like I said in the beginning, all kinds of comments are welcome (not the rude ones, of course, everyone be nice!).
> 
> I plan on continuing this story and will try to update regularly, as much as my schedule allows. Thanks again for reading, have a nice day :)


End file.
